Region: 4G transmission towers

Jamaica-based Digicel this year will offer 4G service in El Salvador, according to a December, 2013 report from the company.

In Costa Rica , the Instituto Costarricense Electricidad - the Costa Rica Electricity Institute (Spanish only) - since last month has offered a limited service of this type, which refers to fourth generation mobile communications.

Local operators Claro, a subsidiary of Mexico’s America Movil, and Movistar, a subsidiary of Telefonica of Spain, are expected soon follow suit.

Mobile broadband Internet is already available in parts of Guatemala and Honduras.

Existing telecom towers are not sufficient to provide 4G service across the region.

Central American telcos generally rent towers from developers, who specialize in getting construction and environmental permits, as well as constructing and maintaining the structure.

With 4G service, users can easily streaming high-definition movies, or participate in a videoconference, using a smartphone, tablet or computer.

So-called third-generation networks, which predominate in Central America, can take up to ten times longer to download big files.